Prison Escapee Apprehended in Pettis County

Shannon DeWayne Watts, a 34-year-old inmate with the Missouri Department of Corrections who escaped from work detail Sunday evening at the Missouri State Fairgrounds, has been apprehended.

According to a press release from the Pettis County Sheriff's Office Tuesday morning, Watts was located in the 3300 block of Route B around 11 p.m. Monday night, along with two other individuals, both of whom were detained, but later released.

The Sheriff's Office received a 911 report of a male with unknown injuries in the area. Deputies, along with Missouri State Highway Patrol Troopers, responded to the area and took Watts into custody. The nature of his injury was not detailed in the report. Watts was transported to the University of Missouri Hospital for medical treatment and is in custody with the Missouri DOC.

Watts is serving a sentence at the Tipton Correctional Facility for second-degree burglary, two counts of first-degree burglary, three counts of forgery, two counts of possession of a controlled substance, two counts of resisting arrest, two counts of tampering with a motor vehicle, possession of a firearm, and leaving the scene of an accident in Greene County, as well as two counts of resisting arrest in Tane County.

He was received by the Missouri Department of Corrections July 29, 2015. He previously was incarcerated from Sept. 9, 2012, to April 22, 2014.

Sunday, Aug. 18, marked the final day of the 11-day Missouri State Fair. All year, teams of minimum-security work-release offenders perform maintenance and other work under close supervision at the fairgrounds. Larger teams are tapped during the fair to help with setup, cleanup, grounds-keeping and other duties.

The Corrections Emergency Response Team (CERT) was activated Sunday night and assisted local law enforcement and the Missouri State Highway Patrol in a thorough search of the fairgrounds, concluding at 6:15 a.m. Monday morning. Watts was not found on the fairgrounds.

The incident is under investigation by the Pettis County Sheriff's Office.